In many typical networked computing devices, a remote administrator has no means to perform automatic client hardware maintenance without touching the client machine. These tasks include flashing a BIOS, or boot sector repair for computing devices.
Some network machines can have maintenance performed remotely from a server, or may have control taken from them remotely. However, the remote nature of the operation is typically only done while still running under a typical boot image. Thus, some maintenance functions cannot be performed through this remote action.
Other problems may include the remote diagnostics of machines, and such diagnostics require the operation of the machine apart from the typical boot image. Again, these actions can only take place at the client machine.
These problems may include the deterioration of physical parts of electromagnetic storage media associated with them. When this happens, an that operates on any of them may not be able to handle the proper correction techniques associated with that problem. Alternatively, the systems themselves may lack the requisite capacity even to determine if any inherent problems exist or are about to happen.
In this manner, the typical prior art does not allow for flexible processing schedules along with dealing with ever-changing security rejection issues. Many other problems and disadvantages of the prior art will become apparent to one skilled in the art after comparing such prior art with the present invention as described herein.